Hi,
I would like to confirm which are the alternatives that I can use as inoculum for anaerobic digestion at a laboratory instead of the usual anaerobic sludge, manure, etc?
I did some research on the web and found the below options, but not sure if they are adequate for an anaerobic experiment?
https://fernland.com.au/companion-2-1-3-1-6-liquid-microbial-inoculant.html
https://www.activevista.com.au/product/bioboost-probiotic-soil-conditioner/
https://microbials.com.au/products/
Appreciate if someone can confirm or provide more information. I don't have access to a wastewater treatment plant at the moment to request a sludge sample.
Regards
I used to do research in bioremediation of contaminated soil. Adding these inocula from commercial sources is called bioaugmentation and the evidence mostly suggested that it wasn’t worth it. The best source of microbes is from the environment you are investigating. A colleague of mine used to refer to commercial inocula as “snake oil”.
William Anam Your question indicate that you might be a beginner in biogas processes/microbiology and do not understand it well enough.
- Further the commercial products you enlisted are far unrelated to the anaerobic/biogas microbiological processes and are primarily designed for crops.
Please have a look here
Book Microbiology of the biogas process
Chapter Protocol for Start-Up and Operation of CSTR Biogas Processes
Steven L. Larson Its impractical to work with single methanogen strain in biogas process.
William Anam you qeustion answerd by the expert Jim C Philp and Steven L. Larson i do agree with them and their comments as ATCC is the source for a wide range of methanogens and I do use the same in my experiments.
However sometimes I do take from the running commercial plants and on an average it depends on the size of the plant and the feed material and we do innoculate from the same plant on weekly basis for better experiments
People can believe what ever they want, but that does not mean it the truth/agreeable. What is more important is people give their opinion on the topic they know/understand.
Aloha William, I suggest that you first consider the process that you want to achieve based on the feedstock(s) and then select the culture afterwards. Design your system from the outside in and it will be more likely to succeed. This is based on 30 years of in situ remediation experience and biogeochemistry research.
The bacteria will adapt to whatever conditions you provide them. Also, very importantly, the culture you start with and the culture you end up with in the system will become very different over time.
Maintaining stable conditions is fundamental to operational success of these conditions. Bioaugmentation projects typically fail due to the failure of the operators to maintain stable conditions that will yield the metabolic pathways to reach the desired outcomes. Thus, biotreatment failures are due to poor operating practices, some of which can be improper selection of culture.
Lastly, be a scientist and carefully scrutinize claims by sales people. They have a different measurement for success relative to your project. They want to move money. You want to move electrons.
Please advise if you have questions or comments. Good luck.
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